Film Society to show Philly flicks

We get it, we get it. "Rocky" is set in Philly. But what about characters beyond the Italian Stallion who have inhabited our streets on celluloid?

To commemorate the 20th anniversary of the Philadelphia Film Festival, the Philadelphia Film Society will screen 10 movies set in our fair city, all for free. This cinematic gift begins tomorrow with the Main Line slapstick "The Philadelphia Story" and will continue throughout the year until the festival opens on Oct. 13.

The movies were selected through online voting by about 400 Philly film fans via the Film Society's website, Facebook and Twitter.

But there are also spots for movies such as "Witness," about Philly detective John Book (a studly Harrison Ford) who must flee the city for the wilds of Lancaster because of a corrupt cop (Danny Glover).

(Fun fact: Co-star Kelly McGillis fell in love with the area, prompting her to settle in Haddonfield, N.J.)

The films selected vary in genres from the goofy "Mannequin" (featuring some stellar shots of Wanamaker's department store) to Terry Gilliam's sci-fi flick "12 Monkeys," which, like "Witness," includes pivotal scenes at 30th Street Station.

Interestingly, David Lynch's 1977 feature-length debut "Eraserhead" is included, even though Philadelphia isn't named as its setting. But Lynch moved to the city in 1965 and attended the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, and he's been quoted as saying the movie's tone was influenced by his time here. Although it was shot in Los Angeles, Lynch believes it has a sense of '70s Philly to it.

While the first three screenings ("The Philadelphia Story," "Trading Places" and "Witness") are scheduled at the Ibrahim Theater at International House, programs coordinator Jared Miller said the Film Society is exploring options for screening movies outside of a theater at site-specific locations. For example, last year the Film Society collaborated with the Rolling Roadshow to screen the first three "Rocky" movies on the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The society is trying something similar by screening Fritz Lang's Weimar classic "Metropolis" at Macy's on March 19.

"There's a resurgence of interest in our city," Miller said about the big-budget productions that have chosen to shoot in Philadelphia, like James L. Brooks' "How Do You Know" and the upcoming Jason Statham action film "Safe." "Focusing on Philadelphia's place in film history just shows how it's more topical today than ever.

"Plus, they're just fun movies."

"The Philadelphia Story"

"Trading Places"

"Witness"

"Mannequin"

"Philadelphia"

"12 Monkeys"

"The Sixth Sense"

"Rocky"

"Eraserhead"

"Blow Out"

"The Philadelphia Story," 7:30 p.m. tomorrow, International House, 3701 Chestnut St., free, 215-387-5125, filmadelphia.org.